SpaceFields an IISc-incubated startup, has raised ₹6.5 crores in seed funding round led by HVB 88 Angels (US-based fund) and O2 Angels Network (Delhi-based deeptech syndicate) with participation from others.

SpaceFields custom-designs and manufactures turnkey solid rocket propulsion systems for aerospace, defence and space applications. It was cofounded in 2021, by Apurwa Masook, Sudarshan Samal and Rounak Agrawal.

Incubated at FSID Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore and supported by the Aerospace Engineering Department, SpaceFields unveiled and tested India’s First Aerospike rocket engine last year. SpaceFields has also filed six patents on various novel technologies developed in-house.

“Amidst the rise of global conflicts, geopolitical tensions, increasing military-industrial backlog and thrust on indigenisation, there is huge room for agile contenders to emerge and solve critical problems. Our pilots and collaborations span a diverse cohort of customers such as DRDO, ISRO, Tri-services, DPSUs like HAL, Tactical drone companies, and several Aerospace OEMs who require custom-developed solid-fuel powered systems,” said Apurwa Masook, Founder and CEO, SpaceFields.

SpaceFields has also received funding from Startup India Seed Fund, and additional grant support from Boeing India, Govt. of Karnataka and Govt. of Odisha. The fresh capital will be used towards the development and testing of critical hardware and various subsystems, R&D in energetic materials and expanding the company’s team.

The startup said it plans to double its team in the coming months to fill roles in functions such as aerospace & mechanical design, chemical and propulsion, and avionics. The development comes at a time when the number of new-age Defence and SpaceTech startups in the country is on the rise. The Centre’s efforts to promote the private sector in sunrise segments, with the recent Budget announcement for strengthening innovation in the Defence sector as well as liberalization of FDI norms in the space sector, has further provided a boost to such startups.

Siddharth Jain, Co-Founder at HVB 88 Angels said “We backed the team at SpaceFields as we saw their drive to rise to a challenge in the manufacturing of solid fuel propulsion systems that will be applicable to various platforms such as rockets and drones alike in the years ahead, in a potential winner-takes-all market. Along with financial investment, our mission is also to assist them in their incubation and growth using our diverse expertise from across geographies and industry verticals.”

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